1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a novel hexapeptide and a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof. The hexapeptide has an increasing vascular permeability suppression action, an anti-edematous action, an anti-inflammatory action, an vascular endothelial disorder amelioration action, a hypotensive action, an protease inhibition action an anti-desseminated intravasscular coagulation syndrome (DIC) action, and a wound healing action. The hexapeptide can be useful as a medical product such as an anti-edematous agent, an anti-shock agent, an anti-thrombus agent, an anti-arteriosclerotic agent, an anti-allergic agent, a hypotensive agent, a wound healing agent, and an anti-inflammatory agent.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a conventional therapy for edematous such as a cerebral edema, a therapeutical method is most widely applied which uses an osmotic diuretic agent to elevate a hydrostatic pressure of a blood and introduce a water in the blood. In this method, a hypertonic solution of a diuretic agent such as glycerol or mannitol is quickly injected intravenously three or four times a day. Each injection time takes about 30 minutes to an hour.
This method, however, requires complicated administration control. The does of the osmotics diuretic agent must be changed according to the pathology and condition of the patients. Further, administration of the osmotic diuretic agent mentioned above must be carefully controlled since the agent causes side effects such as disturbance of an electrolyte and dehydration.
Antibiotics are mainly used in conventional therapy for septicemia. But, since the antibiotics cannot suppress the increasing vascular increasing permeability, shocks cannot be often remedied satisfactorily in the therapy using the antibiotics. Adrenal cortical hormones are also used together with the above antibiotics for suppressing the increasing vascular permeability. However, a large dose of steroids such as adrenal cortical hormones causes side effects such as an immuno-suppression, an electrolytic abnormality, and a rebound phenomenon.
As described above, a medicament has not yet been found which can suppress the increasing vascular permeability in the edematous and the septicemia, can cause little side effects, and not require the complicated administration for dosage.